When to Run Leak Detection

Five moments where a subscription audit materially extends the runway.

At each of these five moments, an audit usually surfaces 30–50% in cuttable spend.

Subscription spend drifts upward by 5–10% per quarter if not audited. These five moments are where the drift has built up enough to be worth a deliberate cut session. Most audits return 30–50% of spend to the runway.

Quick answer

At each of these five moments, an audit usually surfaces 30–50% in cuttable spend.

What you are trying to do

Five moments where a subscription audit materially extends the runway.

Best next step

Subscription Purge · Leak Detection

Limit to remember

Treat this as a practical aid for the task, not a replacement for professional judgment.

Key points

▸ Income drop. Layoff, client loss, reduced hours. First audit is subscriptions — they're the fastest cut, immediate cash flow improvement, no negotiation needed.
▸ Pre-raise quarter. Before any fundraise or salary negotiation, run the audit. A leaner burn tells a better story and extends the runway you're negotiating from.
▸ Relocation. Moves surface duplicate subscriptions (old gym + new gym overlap, old cable + new internet bundle). Audit while mid-move catches these.
▸ Post-free-trial month. The month after a busy sign-up period (January, new-school-year, post-product-launch). Dead free trials have converted to paid and you didn't notice.
▸ Annual renewals. Most annual-plan subscriptions auto-renew and you forgot. Audit once a year across renewal months — one of the highest dollar-return sessions.

Examples

Income drop audit

Layoff. Run Leak Detection: 18 active subs, $280/mo. Kill 10, keep 8. New monthly $95 — $185/mo back to the runway. Extends Runway Zero by ~3 weeks.
Pre-raise lean

Before Seed pitch. Audit business + personal overlap. Find $180/mo in duplicated cloud + SaaS. 18 months of runway stretched to 19+. One more month of oxygen for the raise.
Annual renewals

January audit: 6 annual plans that auto-renewed in the prior 12 months. Cancel 3, savings $800/year = $67/mo back. Barely notice the cut.

When to use which tool

Frequently asked questions

› How long does an audit take? How-to

First audit: 60–90 minutes with bank/card statements. Subsequent quarterly audits: 20–30 minutes. The first surfaces the most; subsequent catch the drift.

› What's a reasonable target for cuts?

30% at first audit is common. 10% quarterly after is typical. If you're cutting less, the drift is beating you.

› How should I use a decision framework in real life? How-to

Use a decision framework to expose the tradeoff, not to outsource the decision. Write down the inputs, compare the output with your constraints, then ask what would change the answer. The strongest use is scenario testing: base case, conservative case, and failure case.

› Is this financial, legal, or tax advice? Trust & accuracy

No, this is not legal, financial, tax, medical, or professional advice unless the page explicitly says that use case is supported. It organizes assumptions so you can inspect them. Verify high-stakes choices with qualified people who can review facts, contracts, regulations, and downside risk.

› What assumption matters most in a decision model? Edge case

The most important assumption is usually the one you are least certain about and most emotionally attached to. Change that input first. If the recommendation flips after a small change, the decision is fragile and needs more evidence before you treat the model as useful.